Vic Sowell had no internet service at his Palestine home and a laptop he barely knew how to use when it struck the East Texan that his granddaughter knew more about computers than he did.

“It was a wakeup call,” the 52-year-old retired correctional officer said of that moment earlier this year with Raina, 5, who studied computers in preschool. “There’s a whole generation of us that just got passed by.”

Thirty-one percent of Texas adults don’t have broadband — high-speed internet — at home, according to Connected Texas, a nonprofit commissioned by the state to create maps of broadband ...

Comment Policy

The Texas Tribune is pleased to provide the opportunity for you to share
your observations about this story. We encourage lively debate on the issues
of the day, but we ask that you refrain from using profanity or other
offensive speech, engaging in personal attacks or name-calling, posting
advertising, or wandering away from the topic at hand. To comment, you must
be a registered user of the Tribune, and your user name will be displayed.
Thanks for taking time to offer your thoughts.

Comments (18)

August 27, 2013 @ 7:02 a.m.

Fred Talmadge

The story does not mention what broadband is. My 3g connection is sometimes considered broadband but with only 3gigs of download and less than 1Mb/s download its only slightly better than the dialup I had a couple of years ago.

So wrong Chuck. The US Gov had the Rural Electrification Program many years ago. It stimulated the economy and brought standards of living up. Satellite internet gives lousy service at overinflated prices. Couldn't justify the costs. Only a few hundred feet from the internet cables but local company refuses to extend service. No choice here at all.

A question for those in the know: is there any specific study that shows broadband access makes your life better? How do you define "better" in this case? Others have asked why this is needed in areas like this. Is it to watch movies, surf the web, etc? It's not that I want to deprive them of the same technology I have, but the internet is not a necessity. I lived for a long time without it. Even after I got the internet I lived happily for a long time without broadband internet. I lived happily and productively without a smart phone for several years after they came out too. So what is it that these people really need from broadband that they're not getting now? There may not be a good answer to that question.

I am 77 and have been using the internet since Al Gore first invented it. Meaning when it was usenet. I live where satellite is the only available so far. And it is extremely expensive costing us up to $700 per year. We cannot continue that amount. We do not qualify for the gov't help for rural elderly because we had it before that came into being. I deeply resent that others are getting for a very small amount what I pay a huge amount for. That is one reason it is so costly for me.

As for a generation getting passed by, I am living testimony that if you were interested in it you did not get passed by. If you thought it wasn't necessary till now, you are the one who passed it by, not the other way around.

August 27, 2013 @ 4:55 p.m.

dave starkey

Many providers choke off the flow of data after you've downloaded a certain amount of data per month. The rates are too high for most areas of rural East Texas. High Speed internet is probably one of the best ways to increase business and education opportunities.But Texas is cutting back on infrastructure improvements like paved roads.

August 27, 2013 @ 5:16 p.m.

Meme Me

Smartphones get the internet. Many are paying twice for the same thing. Your smartphone will transmit the internet to your wireless computer.

I'm sure this is a real problem, but its not the only one Texas faces. How comes you can get better performance and much better price performance in many African cities than you can in our major cities in Texas? No competition, monopolistic practices, almost cartel like pricing. Gee, I live less that a mile from Austin City Hall and only have one Internet provider that isn't a cellphone company. How does that make us a high tech city?

This is one of the reasons rural Texas is so radically biased in their thought processes about political persons. Rural Texas believes what little they hear and Rafael Eduardo Cruz is one example. Rafael Eduardo Cruz is ashamed of his name and uses Ted(Toxically educated) to Americanize himself, position and attitudes! Ask yourselves, why would anyone want to change hie/her name? The TEA-types are running scared because they are losing more and more across the nation with their scare tactics and combative stances on the budget and debt limit. In that same vein, you can do your part by grabbing a few voter registration forms and sitting outside grocery stores, churches and state drivers license offices. Make waves and show your interest in getting others ready to vote early. Staying behind and hoping others will do their part is not the American way. Get busy - Get involved - Get Registered - Get out the vote! All Americans should stand your ground when voting. NO ONE SHOULD KEEP YOU FROM VOTING, REGISTERING OTHERS TO VOTE, OR GETTING OUT THE VOTE! DO NOT ALLOW ANYONE TO KEEP YOU FROM VOTING. V.O.T.E.(Vote Out The Encumberance)

August 28, 2013 @ 12:43 p.m.

Jim Baxa

Internet is not a need, it is a want. I live in a rural area in W Texas, therefore my internet speed is slower and my cost is higher. That is one of the negatives of living where I live, but I wouldn't trade it for the crime and traffic of city life. Govt can't fix this problem, the private market will fix this as demand is there.

I tried becoming part of my very conservative community for about three to four years, before giving up in disgust at the narrow-mindedness, intolerance, and bigotry I found everywhere...if you are different, you are shunned...So I got online, and now I enjoy a network of like-minded individuals and am taking online courses with people from all around the world. It is like an oasis in a cultural wasteland. I recommend rural residents use the internet to access educational opportunities, and to learn about other cultures and what goes on in the world outside the narrow confines of their small town...Until rural Texans wake up and understand they are letting the whole world and their own growth and development pass them by, their communities will continue to stagnate.

Many thanks go to you for this article. It seems that many are unaware or don't care that multitudes of people need the educational opportunities as well as accessible means to the internet. Education is the key. People as a majority are afraid to take the step once realization slaps them in the face. I sat at the library, listening to the class, thinking how dumb. Inside,though,I was beginning to see. My granddaughter as well as my son, got me to thinking. I'm glad I did. Hopefully your article will wake some people up! We are growing in technology, but forgetting those left behind. For the world to work, we all need to be a part. Again, I say, "Thank you." May God bless and keep you.

September 1, 2013 @ 4:21 p.m.

Gary Porter

As to whether high-speed internet is a want or a need, you could say the same thing about television and radio, based on these arguments. Does anyone really need to watch televsion? Do we really need telephones? My grandparents drew their water from a well; and so could we--who needs a public water system?

These comments remind me of the passage in Robert Caro's biography of Lyndon Johnson that describes the advent of electricity in the Texas Hill Country, which Sam Rayburn and Lyndon Johnson worked so strenuosly to get funded.

Poor and lacking much education, the people were fearful of this strange new technology, even though it promised a quantum leap in easing the hardships of a life we can hardly imagine today, when laundry required an entire day and kitchens were smoke-filled infernos. Rumors persisted about the dangers, and the REA almost didn't get the required number of households to sign up.

But finally progress won out. Caro describes that first night the master switch was flipped, and one by one small beams of light began to blink, first here, then there, one by one, as they spread across the hills and valleys of central Texas. And the darkness which had stilled the lives of generations was lifted.

Ignorance is darkness; it is to the betterment of the totality of society that we lift the curtain and share our common knowledge.

September 28, 2013 @ 12:18 a.m.

Michael Ponder Jr

Gary Porter I wish more seen it like you do.And despite what most may say.Broadband makes a LOT easier.

It's not just for youtube and netflix.. sure some people use it for that.But having had broadband when i went to north carolina for a few years and then coming back to texas, i can say that it made a LOT of things easier.As for this moronic notion that dial up is just as good...

Bullcrap.

I had dial up here where i live.. it was slow as can be, you can't even get 56kb a second here!At most i got 4 kb a second.. and it took FOREVER to do anything... if it be work or play, it took way too long.If i had to send some paper work over the internet.. dear god.. sending any sort of file.. and receiving took FOREVER.

I live in the small town of Votaw texas... i bet you're all going "where the heck is that?"Well it's out of Cleveland Texas.. in Hardin County... closest city(not really THAT close) is Beaumont..And i been out and about.. there are plenty of people living out here.. but Votaw is snug against a few other areas.. all together here there are plenty of people.

On the way to my place from Cleveland Texas, there are plenty of houses along the way that i would think running something along there would be good.

I am getting way off track here though.Right now all i can get is something from Verizon called "Home Fusion" i pay about 120 a month for only 30 gigs.. lemme tell you, it runs out FAST.. too fast..

But living out here, i can't drive.. and i have a few conditions i won't mention.. but it makes it hard for me... also.. i don't CHOOSE to live here.. i HAVE to... i can't afford to move.

But on top of all that... it's the year 2013.. almost 2014.. and decent broadband is STILL not everywhere? What the H*LL?!

Their are a lot of reasons for that.. one reason is greed and the fact that many companies have a monopoly... they rather not compete everywhere.. cause then they can't just charge what EVER they want.. and give you so little.. with it how it is... wireless companies can charge out the *ss and give very little...

Funny though, if i had the means RIGHT now to try and bring broadband here, i bet ANYTHING i would have officials from Verizon beating down my door telling me how i should NOT peruse bringing it here.

You see, Verizon owns the lines here in my area.. and they're the ones with the closest tower here for anything.. a lot of people have actually stop using the phone lines out here, they opt to use Cell phones or nothing at all.. so those copper phone lines are just sitting there not used.What is the point? They need to just remove it and bring something better here..

I use the Internet to learn from home.I quit School a LONG time ago... i used to live in houston... but for what ever reason.. as i can not remember everything ... i felt i was not learning anything.. so i quit.. but i still want to learn.. and the internet is AWESOME for that.. i have learned so much.

Bottom line, broadband is more of a "need" than many might think... and one day it's going to be used for a LOT of things.. and without having the infrastructure here.. we're going to be left behind in the dust....

Just because it's not a need to some people.. does not mean it's not useful.My Sister literraly left texas because of the fact that for collage she needed good broadband... can't get it here.. she went to North Carolina..

When i was there.. you could go WAY out and still find broadband in many places.. as long as their were people living there... i come back to texas.. and it's just in big cities... that's just not right in my book.

Alright.. enough of my ranting...I hope that eventually big companies get the picture and do something...